Grey London has fought off stiff competition from such established agencies as BBH, Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, McCann and VCCP to claim YouTube's annual, inter-agency 'Film Hack'. The winning submission was entitled '#Tattroulette', and was one of nine entries submitted for the contest, which is run by the creative agency relationships team at Google UK. The Film Hack is just one part of YouTube's strategy to encourage the world's top advertising agencies to use and enjoy using their platform as much as they do TV, a goal which appears to be getting more realistic by the year as YouTube's popularity continues to increase.
The Film Hack is just one part of YouTube's strategy to encourage the world's top advertising agencies to use and enjoy using their platform as much as they do TV
The brief this year was to focus on the global YouTube community, with the competing agencies tasked with demonstrating that they understand the world of YouTube and it's users; how they grow, engage and communicate with their audiences. Every participating agency was paired up with a YouTuber, who acted as the brief, the brand and the talent. The agencies were then asked to help these YouTubers (who had a subscriber base of between 50 and 100,000) “Tell the next phase of their story.” The idea was to let the agencies really “Get under the skin” of their partner and using their own unique style, tone and audience to co-create a piece of dynamic, interesting content. They were given only basic production and editing support from the competition's partner; Across the Pond, and access to YouTube mentoring and facilities.
Grey were given 'Lexi' as their YouTuber and two weeks in which to work with her. In the first video, Lexi asks her subscribers to tweet her with suggestions for a new tattoo and in the second video, she takes these tweets and uses a literal roulette wheel to select the tattoo she'll actually be branded with. It's a video that shows just how powerful a tool YouTube can be in connecting YouTubers with their audience. A spokesperson for the team said they had “A great time working on the Film Hack brief,” and that the restraints of the contest allowed them to “Learn the value of not over-polishing” their work. They said “In advertising we spend months, making every detail spot on,” but that this approach would have lost them marks in the contest. They said this was “About authenticity, Knowing the YouTuber. Adopting their style. Warts and all,” and that was “Refreshing.”
In the first video, Lexi asks her subscribers to tweet suggestions for a new tattoo and in the second, she uses a literal roulette wheel to select the tattoo
Charlotte Morton, the industry head of Google's creative agency relations team, said that the passion they saw the agencies bring to their assigned YouTubers was genuinely inspiring. She says they have given their temporary partners “Some incredibly creative ideas for both their channels and their careers,” and that they have also used the contest as an opportunity to learn “What it takes to build sustainable and authentic audiences,” which is key for any brand who wants to get anywhere on YouTube.
#Tattroulette: Part 1
#Tattroulette: Part 2
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and musician from Kidderminster in the UK, who spends (wastes) at least 30 minutes of every working day on YouTube.
